Written by Jordan Richardson, sophomore
Each semester brings new opportunities for students in agriculture. The pilot for an immersive undergraduate internship experience, called the Undergraduate Development and Internship Research Experience or UDAIRE, found success last summer. ALEC faculty –Drs. Stephens, Rampold, and Paskewitz –partnered with Dr. Liz Eckelkamp in Animal Science and Dr. Sharon Jean-Phillipe in the School of Natural Resources to train three undergraduate students for an eight-week internship with Sweetwater Valley Farms in Philadelphia, Tennessee.
Jean-Phillippe, who spearheaded the internship program, said, “I had heard of students in agriculture who have had no exposure to the field itself… I knew I could help that.”
The internship hosted three minority students who engaged in team-building, farm experience, processing within the dairy industry, as well as marketing and retail. “The goal [of the internship] was for students to fully grasp every aspect of the dairy industry. Each of my students learned immensely from this experience, and it was rewarding to watch them grow over such a short period of time,” said Jean-Philippe.
The interns spent three weeks on campus participating in leadership, communication, and research training before heading out to Sweetwater Valley for the six week on-farm portion of the program. A few of the hands-on activities featured this summer included pen management, monitoring health reports, calf feeding, and milk management.
The UDAIRE program is eager to observe the future of the internship, which is continuing this summer with new interns. This year’s program has expanded to include partners from the University of Kentucky, North Carolina A&T, and North Carolina State University to recruit interns across multiple states, help expose more students to agriculture, and grow the impact of the UDAIRE program.
